International interest in Auckland's 57-level luxury apartment tower has more than doubled since New Zealand went into lockdown to halt the spread of the coronavirus.
Real estate agency CBRE, which is marketing the apartments, said inquiries from overseas buyers had risen more than 200 percent in the last two weeks.
Gavin Lloyd, CBRE’s national director of residential projects, said interest was partly driven by the way coronavirus is being managed in New Zealand.
“We are receiving inquiries from expat Kiwis living in London, New York, Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore. Many of these buyers are looking to New Zealand with a potential view to returning home. We have also seen a significant uplift in inquiry from across Asia and USA, with buyers seeking a safe ‘bolt-hole’ investment," he said.
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“The quality of buyer inquiry is very good: well-qualified buyers who have the capacity to buy, looking at property as a robust investment class in these times. Additionally, offshore parties are saying that their interest in The Pacifica is partly a positive reaction to the way the Covid-19 situation is being managed at a government level in New Zealand.”
Lloyd said that since the lockdown, $8 million in contracts had been issued for apartments in The Pacifica. Last month the sale of one of the 235m2 penthouse apartments was concluded for $8 million, with the buyer amalgamating two adjoining apartments for his New Zealand residence.
The Pacifica's super penthouse has an asking price of $35 million, but prices for other apartments in the tower start at just $853,000. To date approximately 90% of apartments in The Pacifica project have been sold.
Construction on the 178-metre tall tower began in November 2017 and completion is due for the fourth quarter of 2020, pending government announcements on the re-commencement of construction nationally.